I was woken up by Russian bombs and planes. I was afraid I wouldn’t get out of Ukraine, says Dynamo Kiev footballer

The current war in Ukraine has already claimed many lives. Almost half a million people have already fled the country, including foreign footballers. Among them is Uruguayan Carlos de Pena, who plays for Dynamo Kiev. He, now safe, has described terror and fear for his bare life.

For footballers on Ukrainian teams, life changed from one day to the next. Whereas just a few days ago they were enjoying luxury, million-dollar contracts and fame, suddenly they had to worry about whether they would survive at all Especially in the capital Kiev, which has come under fire from the Russian army.

Uruguayan Carlos de Pena, who has been playing for Dynamo Kiev for four years, described the nightmare. on Thursday, February 24, when the war broke out, he sent a chilling message to his fans from Kiev.

“The situation is serious, I am here in Kiev. My family is in Uruguay, thank God. I just ask you to pray and everything will be fine, ” de Pena, who has lived through several days of horror, wrote on Twitter.

The nightmare

After a few days, he managed to escape from Kiev and is currently in Moldova with his teammates. He described to the fans how his stay in the epicentre of the war went. ” A nightmare that ends for me, but continues for many others,” de Pena began.

“At 4:55 a.m. on Feb. 24, I was awakened by the sound of planes and bombs exploding in Kiev. The peace ended and the nightmare began. On the street I saw the helplessness of the people, the lines in the stores for supplies and how people were running to the border. Together with Vitinho and other Brazilian players, we went to hide in a hotel. Collapsing roads, lack of food and fuel meant we spent the night in an underground hotel with a strong structure to protect us from possible bombing.

The fears were great and there were no ways out. It was very risky to leave Kiev, we were a group of 40 people and we were together in everything. On Friday, Russian troops started invading several places near Kiev. Explosions were very close, civilians were starting to die and fear was growing. Night came and the Russians were already outside the gates of Kiev and threatening to take it over. A terribly difficult night.

On Saturday, we still couldn’t find a solution to get out. But then I spoke to a BBC journalist who has experience of three wars. We decided to get on the train towards Romania, despite the risk of there being no room on the train or some other problem. We got on the train and after 17 hours we arrived in a town on the border, where we changed to a bus to Moldova.

I want to say a big thank you to everyone who supported us, it meant a lot to us. I was very scared, I often hid and went to cry. I didn’t want others to see me, I wanted them to see me strong. I think of all my Ukrainian teammates and the whole Ukrainian people who are suffering from this senseless horror. The solidarity of Ukrainians is admirable. I hope for peace, and I thank God again, because deep down I thought I would not get out of there. Glory to Ukraine!”

Source: Carlos de Pena